Cinnamon Bread Pudding with Whiskey Sauce

Last month, I headed to Kansas on a whirlwind adventure in the Flint Hills cattle country. One night we were treated to a gourmet chuck wagon supper with an incredible Cinnamon Bread Pudding with Whiskey Sauce as the grand finale! Disclaimer: I am a Certified Angus Beef® Brand Ambassador. I receive compensation for this role which includes social sharing and blog posts featuring this brand. All opinions are my own.

Cinnamon Bread Pudding

Our friends at Certified Angus Beef® Brand arranged an amazing blogger trip to Kansas which included visiting a cattle ranch, a feed yard, a professional kitchen to learn about cuts of beef and a heck of a lot more. A bonus was a trip took us into Oklahoma to Ree Drummond’s, AKA The Pioneer Woman’s, lodge and studio as well as The Mercantile, her restaurant and retail shop.

The Secret!

I was with over a dozen blogger friends and we all moaned with glee as we tasted this out of this world bread pudding. It was so light; we couldn’t figure out why! But then one smart cookie looked up the recipe in Rollins’ cookbook, A Taste of Cowboy, that we each had received, and found the answer. Hamburger buns! Not the stale, dense, leftover bread our moms taught us to utilize. This was genius as we always have odds and ends of both hamburger and hot dog buns in our freezer! I knew I’d have to try this version at home.

Half a Batch

12 servings was just a wee too much for the 3 of us, so I cut the recipe in half and tweaked it just a touch. Measuring out a half egg easy since I know a large egg is about 3 tablespoons in volume. Just whisk it and measure out 1 1/2 tablespoons. Voila, half an egg! I didn’t cook it in a cast iron skillet over hot coals, like our host did, but our Cinnamon Bread Pudding was still outstanding!

We were blessed to be treated to a chuck wagon dinner featuring some amazing recipes from Kent Rollins. He was gracious enough to share a cookbook with us all!

Certified Angus Beef® Brand

Certified Angus Beef has been my go-to beef for the last few years. I knew it was the highest quality beef available, but after this sojourn, I finally understood why! Certified Angus beef cattle is raised with the highest standards which ensures the best marbling and therefore the most tender, flavorful product. Many of these ranchers have been raising beef for generations and now utilize modern technology, like DNA testing, to make sure the best of the best goes from farm to table! If you haven’t tried Certified Angus Beef, make sure you do! Plus, you can check this restaurant locator to find out where you can find this amazing beef in your hometown. I recently dined at Red, the Steakhouse in downtown Indianapolis and had a magnificent steak. Maybe the best ever!!

Cinnamon Bread Pudding with Whiskey Sauce

A light textured bread pudding drizzled with whiskey sauce. Recipe adapted from Kent Rollins, A Taste of Cowboy Ranch Recipes and Tales from the Trail

Author:Liz Berg

Prep Time:15 mins

Cook Time:45 mins

Total Time:1 hour

Yield:12 servings

Ingredients

Bread Pudding::

2 cups milk

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 eggs

1/2 cup butter, melted

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

8-10 hamburger buns (I used 8 as they were larger brioche buns)

Whiskey Sauce::

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter, melted

2 cups heavy cream

4-6 tablespoons whiskey

1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°. Lightly butter 8 x 11-inch baking dish.

Whisk together the milk, sugar, and eggs until smooth. Slowly whisk in the butter, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

Tear half the buns (2½ of them) into 1-inch pieces and add to the wet mixture.Immerse the buns until moist. Tear the remaining buns, add to the mixture but don’t mash. The second batch of bread pieces should be moistened, but still retain their shape.

Pour the mixture into the baking pan.

Bake for about 35 minutes, or until the pudding is sponge-like and springs back when touched in the middle. Do not over bake.

Make whiskey sauce by combining all the ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook for 1 minute.

Drizzle warm sauce over slices of bread pudding.

Notes

I made half of Kent Rollins’ recipe. Just whisk the second egg and add about half of it. I baked in a 7 x 7-inch casserole dish for about 35 minutes.

Our fabulous chuck wagon supper! This Cinnamon Bread Pudding was a sublime way to end our meal. The company and dishes were unforgettable!! Thank you, Certified Angus Beef® Brand for sharing why your beef IS the best. I was already of this mindset and now I understand why! Indianapolis friends, find the best selection at Market District in Carmel.

Also, a very special thanks to rancher and blogger, Debbie Lyons-Blythe, of Kids, Cows and Grass, who hosted an elegant luncheon on her deck with a mesmerizing view of the Flint Hills of Kansas. She and her family generously opened their home to this group of bloggers and dazzled us with their warmth and hospitality.

Note: This post may contain affiliate links; view my Disclosure Policyfor details. I earn a small percentage from any purchase you make by clicking on these links. This helps me keep my kitchen stocked with butter and chocolate!

It was a mind blowing trip. Certified Angus Beef never fails in any of their endeavors – and especially in providing us with the #BestBeef! It was so great meeting you and spending our mornings face to face instead of behind a computer chat box! 🙂 The food was incredible and that whisky sauce…I could eat it on so many treats!

What an amazing trip. The Flint Hills are beautiful but so is Oklahoma. I would have loved to have met you in Pawhuska (and would have taken you to some amazing places besides the Drummond ranch). Bread pudding always makes me think of my mom who kept used to always experiment to find the best recipes. Her tip—day old donuts. Excellent post, Liz.

How cool, Liz! Certified Angus Beef is the best, exactly what I buy, and lucky you with this trip, chuck wagon supper and all. The bread pudding looks delicious and unique with the buns. Fun adventure for sure!

What a wonderful cooking experience!!! Certified Angus Beef IS the best for sure. This bread pudding has my mouth watering and reminds me of a bourbon bread pudding we once tasted at Keeneland Race track in Lexington, KY. Hitting the print button :).

What a fabulous trip! I would have loved it even though I don’t eat meat and my grandfather was a butcher. I think I ate too much beef as a kid!Love being out in wide open spaces though and I’m sure I would have adopted a cow! However this bread pudding has my name on it. I don’t like drinking whiskey but I sure do love whiskey sauce. Go figure!

Wow Liz, what a fun trip…I have never been to that part of the Country…great pictures as well!
I am not a big fan of bread pudding, but this one looks to tempting…especially topped with whiskey sauce…yum!
Enjoy your week 🙂

What absolutely fun!!!! Looks like you made a lot of new friends and got some new tasty recipes! This pudding is awesome and, having been raised in the south, I know from experience the lovely pairing of bread pudding and whiskey sauce!

Looks delicious! But I’m assuming the ingredients, as given, were for the full recipe, and you halved them for the 7″ x 7″ pan, right? What size pan would you use for the ingredient amounts listed? 9 x 13″? I have hamburger buns leftover from a cookout, and this will be a great way to use them up!Thanks!

We are so jealous! LOL, Panos almost fainted when I read this post to him and showed him your photos. And that steak on the video…Oh Lord!!!!:) AND baked beans to go with it? This can’t be real!!! You were faking this somehow, right? What a trip! You see, Panos loves Westerns and loves the Southern food. So I can’t accurately describe you his excitement over this post! And your pudding recipe with the whiskey at the end just hit the nail on its head:)
Wish one day we’ll be able to visit the States and experience the authentic Southern hospitality and food with such great folks!
Thanx so much for this awesome post dear! xoxoxo